Master Gudo Nishijima has been practicing Buddhism for more than sixty years.
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Sunday, November 25, 2007

How should we face the death?

I just want to ask for your advice about, how should we face the death with Zen's viewpoint?and what should we do, when death is coming to our life?

Thank you for your advice.

Isahito

Dear Isahito San,

Now I am living, and so I do not know any thing about death at all. And when death will appoach gradually to me, I guess that this world will become dark more and more, and it will become perfctly dark at last. That might be death. In Buddhism we do not believe in the existence of life after death. Even though Tibetan Buddhism believe in the existence of life after death, Master Dogen insists that in Buddhism we believe in the oneness between body and mind, and so if our body has died, our mind also will die, and it might be completely impossible for our mind to survive after death of our physical body at all, in Shobogenzo, Bendowa. And I think that this theory might be true.

Therefore in such situations I think that there is no way for us to solve the problem of death, and it might be the best way for us to accept death as it is. We, Buddhists, usually practice Zazen everyday, and so we can keep our autonomic nervous system balanced, and then we can avoidworry of coming death, which is the result of rather strong sympathetic nervous system, and fear of coming death, which is the result of rather strong parasympathetic nervous system.

So I would like to recommend you to practice Zazen two times a day every day for making yourautonomic nervous system balanced, to throw away worry and fear of death completely.

7 Comments:

Thanks for your advice Roshi...but I have some others questions.1. If there is no life after the death, how about the working of karma?2. Some people don't want to suicide because they afraid that, they will go to the hell after his dead, or get a lot of bad karma.

But if there is no life after the dead, that means it doesn't matter for every one to suicide because, there is no hell after the dead.

Could you give me some advices, about the meaning of "there is no life after the dead".

but, by the way, now I understand that we don't need to worry about the death, because I haven't dead yet. If I want to about the death, one day, I surely will see it by my self. The most important is how we should live at this present moment.

This is fascinating. Dogen states that Body/Mind/One.This is clear. However this mind and body are not this puny self that scrambles around after bones and it's own tale. In Zazen I see that This mind is none other than Buddha and this body none other than than the Pure land. What is it that dies other than that which misunderstands what itself actually is. Respectfully, Barry

In my studies, I think Buddha put an end to reincarnations. That is to say, all beings who do not realize their budhi (bodhi) nature [and defeat desire] will relive this exact life until they arrive at that ultimate understanding.

I may be oversimplifying a great deal of reading but that is the concept I gathered.

"Looking for the tabernacle maker,through the many cycles of birth.And in not finding him,painful are the cycles of birth.

No more, maker of tabernacles,for you [Mara] have been seen.You shall make my tabernacle no more.

The rafters are brokenthe ridge-pole is sunderedthe mind approaches the Eternal.

153, 154. These two verses are famous among Buddhists, for they are the words which the founder of Buddhism is supposed to have uttered at the moment he attained to Buddhahood.

The exact rendering of this verse has been much discussed, chiefly by Mr. D'Alwis in the Attanugaluvansa, p. cxxviii, and again in his Buddhist Nirvâna, p. 78; also by Childers, Notes on Dhammapada, p. 4, and in his Dictionary. Gogerly translated: 'Through various transmigrations I must travel, if I do not discover the builder whom I seek.' Spence Hardy: 'Through many different births I have run (to me not having found), seeking the architect of the desire-resembling house.' Childers: 'I have run through the revolution of countless births, seeking the architect of this dwelling and finding him not.' D'Alwis: 'Through transmigrations of numerous births have I run, not discovering, (though) seeking the house-builder.'

'The maker of the tabernacle' is explained as a poetical expression for the cause of new births, at least according to the views of Buddha's followers, whatever his own views may have been. Buddha had conquered Mâra, the representative of worldly temptations, the father of worldly desires, and as desires (tamhâ) are, by means of upâdâna and bhava, the cause of gâti, or 'birth,' the destruction of desires and the conquest of Mâra are nearly the same thing, though expressed differently in the philosophical and legendary language of the Buddhists. Tamhâ, 'thirst' or 'desire,' is mentioned as serving in the army of Mâra. (Lotus, p. 443.)

Thank you very much for your important questions, and my answers are as follows.

(Isahito San) 1. If there is no life after the death, how about the working of karma?

(Gudo) The Sanskrit word karma means only a conduct, but in the later wrong Buddhist theory, karma usually suggests some kind of fatalistic theory. But such a fatelistic theory is a wrong interpretation of Buddhism, and so we should not be infuenced by such a wrong theory.

(Isahito San) 2. Some people don't want to suicide because they afraid that, they will go to the hell after his dead, or get a lot of bad karma.

(Gudo) When we think about suicide, we should think about it on the scientific reasonable basis. The late American psycologist Karl Menninger explained that a suicide usually occurs from a too much stronger sympathetic nervous system, and I believe in his theory true. Therefoe we should be careful not to be deluded by wrong religious suppositions.

(Isahito San) But if there is no life after the dead, that means it doesn't matter for every one to suicide because, there is no hell after the dead.

(Gudo) I think that a suicide is usually a wrong mistake, which comes from too much strong sympathetic nervous system.

(Isahito San) Could you give me some advices, about the meaning of "there is no life after the dead".

(Gudo) Human beings usually have their very strong hope to live longer for ever. So they usually want to live for evever, but actually speaking, such a wrong idea can never be realized on the earth at all. Therefore we should know real facts exactly.

(Isahito San) but, by the way, now I understand that we don't need to worry about the death, because I haven't dead yet. If I want to about the death, one day, I surely will see it by my self. The most important is how we should live at this present moment.

(Gudo) Therefore we need to practice Zazen everyday, for keeping our autonomic nervous system balanced to experience the true situations of human being, that it is impossible for us to live forever at all.

Thank you very much for your sincere questions about very important human problems.

In my studies, I think Buddha put an end to reincarnations. That is to say, all beings who do not realize their budhi (bodhi) nature [and defeat desire] will relive this exact life until they arrive at that ultimate understanding.

(Gudo's answer) I guess that some kind of strange Buddhist Sutras might show such a strange theory, but I think that if we can live longer for a ever, the situations might be very happy, but unfortunately it is impossible for us to meet a person, who has been living for more than 200 years on the earth already.

(Mysterion San's opinion) I may be oversimplifying a great deal of reading but that is the concept I gathered.

"Looking for the tabernacle maker, through the many cycles of birth.

(Gudo) Unfortunately it is impossible for me to find the existence of the cycles of birth.

(Mysterion San's quotation) And in not finding him,painful are the cycles of birth.

(Gudo) If I can continue my life again and again, I will be very happy.

(Mysterion San's quotation) No more, maker of tabernacles, for you [Mara] have been seen. You shall make my tabernacle no more.

(Gudo) I wander whether such a kind of Mara really exists on the earth.

(Mysterion San's quotation) The rafters are broken the ridge-pole is sundered the mind approaches the Eternal.

153, 154. These two verses are famous among Buddhists, for they are the words which the founder of Buddhism is supposed to have uttered at the moment he attained to Buddhahood.

The exact rendering of this verse has been much discussed, chiefly by Mr. D'Alwis in the Attanugaluvansa, p. cxxviii, and again in his Buddhist Nirvâna, p. 78; also by Childers, Notes on Dhammapada, p. 4, and in his Dictionary. Gogerly translated: 'Through various transmigrations I must travel, if I do not discover the builder whom I seek.' Spence Hardy: 'Through many different births I have run (to me not having found), seeking the architect of the desire-resembling house.' Childers: 'I have run through the revolution of countless births, seeking the architect of this dwelling and finding him not.' D'Alwis: 'Through transmigrations of numerous births have I run, not discovering, (though) seeking the house-builder.'

'The maker of the tabernacle' is explained as a poetical expression for the cause of new births, at least according to the views of Buddha's followers, whatever his own views may have been. Buddha had conquered Mâra, the representative of worldly temptations, the father of worldly desires, and as desires (tamhâ) are, by means of upâdâna and bhava, the cause of gâti, or 'birth,' the destruction of desires and the conquest of Mâra are nearly the same thing, though expressed differently in the philosophical and legendary language of the Buddhists. Tamhâ, 'thirst' or 'desire,' is mentioned as serving in the army of Mâra. (Lotus, p. 443.)

Best regards, Charles

(Gudo) Unfortunately, I can never believe that those kinds of strange facts have occurred on the earth historically.